Cliff Pinckard, an overnight editor / reporter for Cleveland.com, is using his training for the New York City Marathon to raise awareness for the Chardon Living Memorial Park, which will honor 2012 high school shooting victims Demetrius Hewlin, Russell King and Daniel Parmertor. He will post updates about the effort until the race on Nov. 1.

CHARDON, Ohio -- It might be the most nerve-racking time, the final weeks of training for the New York City Marathon.

It has been a remarkably smooth effort so far ... no injuries, no serious illnesses, just the usual aches and pains that come with trying to get a 50-year-old body into condition for 26.2 miles.

Now it's time to think about how to actually run the race, and from the many people I've spoken to during the past few months, there is a common theme:

From Jeff Fisher, co-owner of Cleveland Running in Shaker Heights: "A lot of people go out way too fast."

Message received.

The goal is to beat four hours. That's about a nine-minute-per-mile pace. It doesn't sound too bad, and it's not if the race ends after 13 miles. It's that second 13, when the lactic acid starts building up in the muscles, where it can get tough.

That's why Wittman and Thomas emphasize it's important to hold to the nine-minute pace ... don't get caught up in the emotions early in the race and take off too fast. If the race is going well at the halfway point, then it will be OK to slowly speed up, building for a strong finish.

"The most common mistake ... is to go out in a marathon and burn all your energy up front," Goldberg said. "You have to use your energy evenly over a matter of time. You can't bank time up front."

Other keys to success during the race: Staying hydrated and also making sure to eat something. Brenda Scinto, a nutrition educator and runner from Mentor, recommends eating every 30 to 45 minutes, followed with plenty of water or Gatorade. I plan on eating energy chews or a granola bar about every 45 minutes.

"Otherwise, the body kicks in and starts breaking down muscles, which is not good," she said. "You have to stay ahead of the game."

The strategy is to get to the final six miles with enough strength to power through to the finish line.

"That last 10K after 20-mile mark, if you're in trouble there, you're never going to get out of trouble," Fisher said. "Just take it easy and respect the distance. ... You don't want to get to the 20-mile mark and go 'uh-oh.'"

That's something I've done too often in the past.

Training update: I'm in the middle of tapering. After weeks of running more than 50 miles per week, I'm running only 30 miles this week, with a long run of eight miles. Thomas and Wittman warn that it's important to let the body heal as the race approaches. They also said runners can be susceptible to illness while tapering. Both of them were less than 100 percent while competing in the Columbus Half-Marathon last weekend because of lingering colds. I may have to quarantine myself for the next several days.

By the way ...: Thomas had hoped to run the half in 1:13, but wasn't 100 percent so he backed off a bit. He still finished in 1:18:43, good for 53rd place out of 10,317 runners. Wittman wasn't far behind, finishing in 1:20:41, 62nd overall. Chardon resident Angela Pohl, 41, a supporter of the Run for Chardon, finished in 2:00:52, a personal best in the half-marathon.